Sunday, June 30, 2013

Kenseth wins at Kentucky following late Johnson spinout

Matt Kenseth grabs fourth win of the season

When crew chief Jason Racliff told Matt Kenseth to pit for fuel only with 25 laps remaining in the Quaker State 400, Kenseth thought he was crazy.

Kenseth beat Jimmie Johnson out of the pits to take the lead, but thought there was no way he could hold off the dominant Johnson, who had led a race-high 182 laps. But when Johnson wrecked on the ensuing restart, Kenseth held the lead through another restart and then pulled away to win at Kentucky Speedway.

“I didn’t roll the dice, Jason did. I thought he was crazy when it happened," Kenseth said.

Jimmie Johnson dominated the race, but wrecked on a restart with 21 laps remaining. He was trying to hold off a hard-charging Joey Logano for second on the restart when he lost control of his car and spun.

Kenseth held off a challenge from Clint Bowyer on the final restart and pulled away for his series-high fourth win of the season.

Jamie McMurray passed Bowyer with four laps remaining to finish second, his best finish since 2010. Bowyer finished third followed by Logano and Kyle Busch. Johnson rallied at the end to finish ninth after pitting following his spin.

An emotional Kenseth thanked his crew over his team radio after taking the checkered flag. The win was his fourth since joining Joe Gibbs Racing this season.

“I don’t even know what to say. Thank you, guys. This is unbelievable. Thank you so much,” he said. “Great job. It was a team effort. You guys make me look so good every week. I couldn’t be any happier and prouder to be a part of this.”

Joey Logano (No. 22 Pennzoil Ford)· One top five, two top 10s; one pole· Average finish of 12.3· Average Running Position of 13.8, seventh-best· Driver Rating of 87.5, 11th-best· Average Green Flag Speed of 170.111 mph, 12th-fastest